Read how to leave a
trail of breadcrumbs so the revelation in your story makes sense!

All good storytelling
is predicated on one thing, trust. The reader must trust that the
characters are, at all times, acting in accordance with their
individual motivations. The reader must also trust that the author
is telling the story in a particular way for good reason. Nobody
likes to be messed about, or made to feel stupid for not spotting
sudden shifts in character behaviour.

The best way to ensure
that any revelations in the story are met with trust, is to sow the
seeds of the revelation throughout the novel, or, to use a Hansel and
Gretel analogy, leave a trail of breadcrumbs. I prefer the analogy
of the breadcrumbs as it necessarily facilitates the idea of
retracing the steps of the characters. When the revelation is
produced it should be possible to trace the story back and find small
signs that, with further examination, may show that the story, or a
particular character, was always heading in that direction.

Subtlety is of course
key to this, which is why Hansel and Gretel didn't leave whole loaves
of bread in a trail to the witches house... subtlety and a lack of
resources presumably, something that can't be said of an author's
lexicon! Each individual breadcrumb on its own may appear
insignificant, a throwaway remark here, a casual glance there, but
combine them all together and the shocking revelation, or loaf of
bread, is revealed.

It's not just huge
revelations that should be treated in this way, arguably all
life-changing decisions such as a character quitting their job,
moving house, emigrating or starting a relationship with someone
should all be given the breadcrumb treatment. There's nothing worse
than a character hating another throughout a novel only to fall in
love with them at the end. Yes there's a fine line between love and
hate but that fine line must be examined throughout if we're to
believe the result.

Writing a novel is a
fluid process, rarely does the plan, however fleshed out, resemble
the finished work. It's as important when editing to think about the
breadcrumbs, ask friends and proofers to highlight passages where
their trust or belief is starting to wain. Once you've reached a
consensus on these passages it's surprisingly easy to go back and
tweak a few actions and dialogues to hint at what's to come without
giving it away.

So use your loaf and be
aware of breadcrumbs!

“The views expressed
in this article do not represent those of mjmeads.com and any
inference to books or authors past or present is purely
coincidental.”